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Abstract

Abstract

Within the last decade, checklists of the ant fauna of several European countries
have been published or updated. Nevertheless, no ant checklists have hitherto been
published for the principality of Andorra, a small landlocked country located in the
eastern part of the Pyrenees. This work presents a critical list of the ant species
of Andorra based on a review of the literature and on the biological material we collected
during several field campaigns conducted in Andorra since the year 2005. Seventy-five
species belonging to 21 genera of
Formicidae were recorded. Nine species were recorded for the first time in Andorra:
Aphaenogaster gibbosa (Latreille, 1798),
Camponotus lateralis (Olivier, 1792),
Camponotus piceus (Leach, 1825),
Formica exsecta Nylander, 1846,
Lasius piliferus Seifert, 1992,
Tapinoma madeirense Forel, 1895,
Temnothorax lichtensteini (Bondroit, 1918),
Temnothorax niger (Forel, 1894),
Temnothorax nigriceps (Mayr, 1855). The most speciose genera were
Formica Linnaeus, 1758 and
Temnothorax Forel, 1890 with 14 and 12 species, respectively. The ant fauna of Andorra is mostly
dominated by Central European species (some are typical cold climate specialists);
however species belonging to the Mediterranean ant fauna were also found. This can
be explained by the particular geographic situation of Andorra which is characterized
by a high mountain Mediterranean climate.

Diversity of ants of the Tetramorium caespitum/impurum complex was investigated in a multidisciplinary study. Focusing on morphologically hardly distinguishable Western Palearctic samples, we demonstrate the genetic and phenotypic diversity, demarcate phylogenetic entities, and discuss the clades in terms of biogeography. Sequences of 1113bp of the mitochondrial COI gene revealed 13 lineages. COII data, worker morphometry and male genitalia morphology corroborated the COI results for seven lineages; the remaining six were disregarded because of small sample size. A comparison with published data on cuticular hydrocarbons showed correspondence. The seven entities show different distribution patterns, though some ranges overlap in Central Europe. Since no major discrepancy between the results of the different disciplines became apparent, we conclude that the seven entities within the T. caespitum/impurum complex represent seven species. Geographical evidence allows the identification of T. caespitum and T. impurum, and we therefore designate neotypes and redescribe the two species in terms of morphology and mtDNA. As the revision of about 50 taxon names would go beyond the scope of this study, we refer to the remaining five species under code names. We discuss our findings in terms of plesiomorphy and convergent evolution by visualizing the mtDNA phylogeny in morphological space.

Widely distributed Palearctic insects are ideal to study phylogeographic patterns owing to their high potential to survive in many Pleistocene refugia and—after the glaciation—to recolonize vast, continuous areas. Nevertheless, such species have received little phylogeographic attention. Here, we investigated the Pleistocene refugia and subsequent postglacial colonization of the common, abundant, and widely distributed ant Myrmica rubra over most of its Palearctic area, using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). The western and eastern populations of M. rubra belonged predominantly to separate haplogroups, which formed a broad secondary contact zone in Central Europe. The distribution of genetic diversity and haplogroups implied that M. rubra survived the last glaciation in multiple refugia located over an extensive area from Iberia in the west to Siberia in the east, and colonized its present areas of distribution along several routes. The matrilineal genetic structure of M. rubra was probably formed during the last glaciation and subsequent postglacial expansion. Additionally, because M. rubra has two queen morphs, the obligately socially parasitic microgyne and its macrogyne host, we tested the suggested speciation of the parasite. Locally, the parasite and host usually belonged to the same haplogroup but differed in haplotype frequencies. This indicates that genetic differentiation between the morphs is a universal pattern and thus incipient, sympatric speciation of the parasite from its host is possible. If speciation is taking place, however, it is not yet visible as lineage sorting of the mtDNA between the morphs.

Abstract The present catalogue of the ants (Hymenoptera, Formicidae) of Bulgaria is made on a base of critical reconsideration of literature (covering the period from 1892 till 2009 and part of 2010) as well as on examination of the authors‘ and several museum‘s collections. A lot of data were omitted in the previous Bulgarian monograph on ants, lots of new data were recently added and many important additions and alterations were made due to taxonomic revisions of Eurasian Formicidae during the last three decades. Two new species are reported for the country [Temnothorax graecus (Forel, 1911) and Temnothorax cf. korbi (Emery, 1924)]. This catalogue contains a list of 163 ant species belonging to 40 genera of 6 subfamilies now known from Bulgaria. Synonyms and information on the previously reported names in relevant publications are given. Known localities of the species are grouped by geographic regions. Maps with concrete localities or regions for each species were prepared. The conservation status of 13 ant species is given as they are included in IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and Bulgarian Biodiversity Act. In comparison with adjacent Balkan regions the ant fauna of Bulgaria is quite rich and its core is composed of South European elements.

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